Dow achieves milestone with BETAMATE Structural Adhesives

Published 8:15 am, Friday, September 12, 2014

BETAMATE Structural Adhesives have been named The Dow Chemical Co.’s third “Breakthrough to World Challenges,” meeting a milestone set by the company as part of its 2015 Sustainability Goals.

A recent recipient of a 2014 R&D 100 Award and two 2014 PACE Awards, BETAMATE Structural Adhesives are used to bond the body structure of automobiles during assembly which enables improved vehicle safety and durability while optimizing weight reduction and providing greater design flexibility.

“Today, we celebrate a milestone in Dow’s sustainability journey — fulfilling our commitment to deliver at least three Breakthroughs to World Challenges in areas like food and nutrition, fresh water and energy and climate change,” said Neil Hawkins, Dow corporate vice president, EH&S and Sustainability. “As our society faces these increasingly complex challenges, Dow is proud to be part of the solution — putting our science and technology expertise to work to deliver real, high-impact innovations in these essential areas for society.”

The challenge of enhancing fuel efficiency in vehicles by replacing heavy steel structures with lighter weight materials like aluminum and composites is maintaining the strength of the vehicle structure. BETAMATE Structural Adhesives are an enabling technology for optimized steel structures and dissimilar material assembly, where traditional joining techniques such as welding and riveting are limited in their applicability.

“BETAMATE Structural Adhesives address energy and climate change, as well as safety and health — two of the pressing world challenges that Dow has committed to help solve as a part of the 2015 Sustainability Goals,” said Steve Henderson, president of Dow Automotive Systems. “Since their introduction in 1999, BETAMATE Adhesives have already contributed to an estimated 23.3 billion kilograms of CO2 emission avoidance and 2.65 billion gallons of gasoline savings.”